Chicago’s Most Eclectic Independent Music Publication

Latest News

  • Legendary Mask Maker, Zagone Studios, Approaches Fifty-Years Of Innovation Right Here In Chicago
  • Photo Gallery: The Bellwether Syndicate @ Concord Music Hall
  • Photo Gallery: Clan of Zymox @ Concord Music Hall
  • The Den Theatre Announces Comedian ALINGON MITRA: The Too Good Tour Coming This Summer To The Heath Mainstage
  • New Album From Lana Del Rey Released Today Marking Her 9th Studio Album In Her Thirteen Years Of Releasing Baroque Pop Hits
  • MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO MAKES HER BLUE NOTE DEBUT WITH JUNE 16 RELEASE OF VISIONARY NEW ALBUM: THE OMNICHORD REAL BOOK
  • Home
  • Music News
    • Breaking News
    • Features
    • This Just In
    • Interviews
    • Reviews
    • ITLM OTRS
    • Local Loop
    • Musical Theatre
    • ChiBluesBro’s Jukebox Reviews
  • Media
    • Photos
    • Videos
    • Streaming Live
  • Events
  • Festivals
  • Promotions
  • About
  • Contact
  • Follow
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Google+
    • Youtube

Bruce Springsteen Returns For Marathon Concert At United Center

Sep 01, 2016 James Currie Features, Music News, Reviews 0


Bruce Springsteen Returns For Marathon Concert At United Center

By Christopher David

The Boss and his mighty ensemble arrived in Chicago again on Sunday as their tour commemorating landmark album The River winds to a close, and the band blazed through a three and a half hour set visiting every corner of their catalog.

Part of what makes Springsteen’s live show and story-songs so universal and relevant is his ability to connect with his audience on so many different levels.   River deep-cuts “I’m A Rocker” and “Cadillac Ranch” are pure, fun, party rock, “Rosalita” and “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out” give the band a chance to show off their chops even more than usual, and tracks like “Jack of All Trades” and “Death to My Hometown” offer catharsis through Springsteen’s well-documented worldview of the Everyman, the hard-working American who watches—often helplessly—as the political and social tides of his country ebb and flow. This was perhaps more relevant here in Chicago than anywhere else on the tour as the band downshifted into a wrenching rendition of “American Skin,” a song about the 1999 wrongful shooting death of Amadou Diallo by NYC police, followed by “Murder, Incorporated,” one of Springsteen’s most unsung rockers. Given the recent clashes between citizens and cops in our fair city, the context wasn’t lost on the sold-out crowd.

Springsteen’s penchant for storytelling is what he’s probably best known for, and that was on full display as the band threw down some of the strongest tales in their canon: opener “New York City Serenade” complete with a string section, “The River,” Born in the U.S.A. outtake and fan favorite “None But the Brave,” and the epic “Backstreets” were all spot-on reminders of how deftly the man can set a scene.

And of course, the band. The E-Street Band is untouchable.

Let’s just get that out of the way. I don’t say it just to grab attention, be dramatic, anything like that. As rock n’ roll bands go as of this moment in time, there is no band on earth that can match their level of precision, showmanship, swagger, or road-tested perfection. Try to find one. Actually, no, you know what? Don’t waste your time.

Truly, what more can be said, at this point in history, about the E-Street Band?   Rising from the streets of New Jersey in the mid-70s to take over the world, guitarists Steven Van Zandt and Nils Lofgren, pianist Roy Bittan, drummer Max Weinberg, and bassist Garry W. Tallent (along with guitarist/violinist Soozie Tyrell, keyboardist Charlie Giordano, and Jake Clemons—nephew to the late Clarence Clemons—on sax) are such a tight unit that it’s almost impossible to measure, and Springsteen’s talent as a bandleader always gets a chance to come to the fore, particularly when the ‘sign request’ portion of the show comes along, with the Boss often coming out into the crowd to retrieve signs requesting everything from the most beloved to the most obscure tunes in their canon.

Thanks to fan requests, the United Center received a rarely played “Mary’s Place” from 2002’s post-9/11 retort The Rising, the aforementioned “None But the Brave” (perhaps my favorite Springsteen song of all time, dating back to the early bootlegging days!), and a version of “Waitin’ On A Sunny Day” that was made all the more fun by the little girl who requested it—the second Springsteen pulled her up on stage to sing a chorus, she grabbed the mic and commanded the 50,000+ crowd like she’d been doing it for years. I don’t know who she was, but she’s a rock star in the making.

Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band are wholly unique in the world of music – a band that exemplifies the best qualities of half a dozen genres, a band that can emotionally connect with a massive crowd at an effortless level, and, perhaps most importantly, a band that still, after over forty years, clearly loves playing together.   Let’s hope they’re also a band that doesn’t intend to stop touring any time soon.

For more on Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, click here

Bruce Springsteen & the E-Street Band – United Center, Chicago, August 28, 2016 (setlist)

New York City Serenade

Prove it All Night

My Love Will Not Let You Down

The Ties That Bind

Sherry Darling

Two Hearts

The Promised Land

Mary’s Place

Racing in the Street

None But the Brave

Hungry Heart

Out in the Street

Death to My Hometown

Jack of All Trades

The River

American Skin (41 Shots)

Murder, Incorporated

Cadillac Ranch

I’m A Rocker

Waitin’ On A Sunny Day

Candy’s Room

She’s the One

Because the Night

The Rising

Badlands

 

Encore:

Backstreets

Born to Run

Dancing in the Dark

Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out

Shout (The Isley Brothers)

Bobby Jean

Share this:

  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Email

Related


  • tweet
Prophets of Rage @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre (Tinley Park) Buddy Guy To Be Honored By The City of Chicago At Fifth Star Awards

James Currie

Related Articles
  • Legendary Mask Maker, Zagone Studios, Approaches Fifty-Years Of Innovation Right Here In Chicago
    Legendary Mask Maker, Zagone Studios,...

    Oct 25, 2021 0

  • Photo Gallery: The Bellwether Syndicate @ Concord Music Hall
    Photo Gallery: The Bellwether Syndicate...

    Mar 27, 2023 0

  • Photo Gallery: Clan of Zymox @ Concord Music Hall
    Photo Gallery: Clan of Zymox @ Concord...

    Mar 27, 2023 0

  • The Den Theatre Announces Comedian ALINGON MITRA: The Too Good Tour Coming This Summer To The Heath Mainstage
    The Den Theatre Announces Comedian...

    Mar 24, 2023 0

  • New Album From Lana Del Rey Released Today Marking Her 9th Studio Album In Her Thirteen Years Of Releasing Baroque Pop Hits
    New Album From Lana Del Rey Released...

    Mar 24, 2023 0

More in this category
  • The Den Theatre Announces Comedian ALINGON MITRA: The Too Good Tour Coming This Summer To The Heath Mainstage
    The Den Theatre Announces Comedian...

    Mar 24, 2023 0

  • New Album From Lana Del Rey Released Today Marking Her 9th Studio Album In Her Thirteen Years Of Releasing Baroque Pop Hits
    New Album From Lana Del Rey Released...

    Mar 24, 2023 0

  • MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO MAKES HER BLUE NOTE DEBUT WITH JUNE 16 RELEASE OF VISIONARY NEW ALBUM:  THE OMNICHORD REAL BOOK
    MESHELL NDEGEOCELLO MAKES HER BLUE NOTE...

    Mar 23, 2023 0

  • New York Experimental Rock Band Swans, Announce New Album And World Tour This Summer With One Stop In Chicago
    New York Experimental Rock Band Swans,...

    Mar 22, 2023 0


Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories

CALENDAR

March 2023
S M T W T F S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Feb    

Archives

  • March 2023 (12)
  • February 2023 (18)
  • January 2023 (9)
  • December 2022 (4)
  • November 2022 (5)
  • October 2022 (12)
  • September 2022 (28)
  • August 2022 (27)
  • July 2022 (37)
  • June 2022 (21)
  • May 2022 (20)
  • April 2022 (13)
  • March 2022 (33)
  • February 2022 (21)
  • January 2022 (22)
  • December 2021 (11)
  • November 2021 (15)
  • October 2021 (16)
  • September 2021 (36)
  • August 2021 (21)
  • July 2021 (26)
  • June 2021 (27)
  • May 2021 (13)
  • April 2021 (12)
  • March 2021 (12)
  • February 2021 (4)
  • January 2021 (2)
  • December 2020 (7)
  • November 2020 (4)
  • October 2020 (3)
  • September 2020 (10)
  • August 2020 (6)
  • July 2020 (7)
  • June 2020 (3)
  • May 2020 (5)
  • April 2020 (3)
  • March 2020 (10)
  • February 2020 (22)
  • January 2020 (10)
  • December 2019 (8)
  • November 2019 (30)
  • October 2019 (30)
  • September 2019 (27)
  • August 2019 (41)
  • July 2019 (33)
  • June 2019 (27)
  • May 2019 (36)
  • April 2019 (25)
  • March 2019 (41)
  • February 2019 (22)
  • January 2019 (11)
  • December 2018 (17)
  • November 2018 (13)
  • October 2018 (34)
  • September 2018 (43)
  • August 2018 (25)
  • July 2018 (34)
  • June 2018 (23)
  • May 2018 (31)
  • April 2018 (24)
  • March 2018 (49)
  • February 2018 (48)
  • January 2018 (25)
  • December 2017 (10)
  • November 2017 (30)
  • October 2017 (10)
  • September 2017 (26)
  • August 2017 (25)
  • July 2017 (42)
  • June 2017 (37)
  • May 2017 (49)
  • April 2017 (54)
  • March 2017 (44)
  • February 2017 (39)
  • January 2017 (14)
  • December 2016 (22)
  • November 2016 (20)
  • October 2016 (20)
  • September 2016 (35)
  • August 2016 (46)
  • July 2016 (51)
  • June 2016 (23)
  • May 2016 (15)
  • April 2016 (18)
  • March 2016 (22)
  • February 2016 (27)
  • January 2016 (11)
  • December 2015 (8)
  • November 2015 (17)
  • October 2015 (21)
  • September 2015 (30)
  • August 2015 (54)
  • July 2015 (49)
  • June 2015 (44)
  • May 2015 (16)
  • April 2015 (6)
  • March 2015 (9)
  • February 2015 (9)
  • January 2015 (2)
  • December 2014 (2)
  • November 2014 (2)
  • October 2014 (1)
  • September 2014 (2)
  • August 2014 (5)
  • July 2014 (1)
  • June 2014 (4)
  • May 2014 (5)
  • April 2014 (1)
  • March 2014 (1)
  • February 2014 (2)
  • January 2014 (2)
  • December 2013 (1)
  • November 2013 (2)
  • October 2013 (1)
  • September 2013 (1)
  • August 2013 (2)
  • July 2013 (3)
  • June 2013 (2)
  • May 2013 (5)
  • April 2013 (3)
  • March 2013 (1)
  • February 2013 (1)
  • May 2012 (2)
  • January 2012 (3)
  • September 2011 (1)

Facebook

Instagram

Photos: @steelpanther live in Chicago at @hobchicago throwback series featuring #michaelstarr, #satchel #lexxifoxx #StixZadinia #ontheprowl #letsgetweird
Photo Gallery: @thebellwethersyndicate : Clan of Xymox Tour 2023 William Faith & Sarah Rose Faith featuring Philly Peroxide, Stevyn Grey & Corey Gorey (Brickbats)
Photo Gallery: @clan.of.xymox (rescheduled tour) 2023 (Ronny Moorings, Mario Usai, Sean Göbel & Daniel Hoffmann) live at Concord Music Hall in Chicago, IL March 24, 2023
Ummm... @alanis Morissette fans, Jagged Little Pill, The Musical. James M Nederlander Theatre. Chicago. April 11th. You're welcome. #jaggedlittlepill #alanismorissette #chicago #musical https://www.choosechicago.com/event/jagged-little-pill/2023-04-11/
Hey Chicago, @lollapalooza 2023 lineup just announced! Who are you most excited about seeing? Headliners this year include @kendricklamar @chilipeppers @odesza @honeymoon @karolg @the1975 @txt_member tickets on sale Thursday at 10am. For more info and complete lineup https://www.lollapalooza.com #lolla #lollapalooza #lollapaloozachicago #chicago #grantpark #musicfestival
Punk Rock Legend @iggypopofficial is still a force to be reckoned with as his 2023 #everyloser tour rolls across the States. Last night the skull ring wearing legend played @saltshedchicago right here in Chicago to a sold out crowd. Talk about a Lust For Life, this age defying 75 year old Detroit Muscle shows no signs of stopping. Here's a throwback to when the punker searched and destroyed Grant Park during a Lollapalooza performance back in 2007. #iggypop #lustforlife #thesaltshed #punker #punkrock #skullring #chicago 📸#jamescurrie
Big Kickoff For New Pop Punk Trio Meet Me At The Altar @mmataband As They Release Debut Album, Music Video And Embark On Sold-Out Headling Tour With A Stop Right Here In Chicago - Tomorrow - @subtchicago. #mmataband #meetmeatthealtar @_edithvictoria_ @teaofmmata @ahduhj #subterranean #chicago #newmusic #poppunk #womeninmusic #kool #soldout #pastpresentfuture #NoFoodNoSleepJustRecords #fueledbyramen
Photos: @elleking performed in Chicago Saturday night at the newest club @saltshedchicago. Here's a few shots from one of her first appearances in Chicago (outside of Lollapalooza) back in 2016 at the Taste of Chicago. #elleking
Drive Through Metal Kings @officialmacsabbath deliver the value meals at @hobchicago. #macsabbath #macsabbathtour #macattack #RonaldOsbourne #SlayerMacCheeze
Chicago's Own: @thebellwethersyndicate Featuring @williamfaith13 & @scaryladysarah release new single and music video for "We All Rise". Written, Directed and Produced right here in Chicago both the track and the video.

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

Tag Cloud

Blues on the Fox (2) Bobby Broom Organi-sation (2) Brian Wilson (2) Can't You Hear Me Knocking (1) Chicago (5) Dap-Kings (1) Doyle Bramhall II (1) Farm Aid (3) Farm Aid 30 (3) FirstMerit Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island (3) Heavy Metal (1) Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre (2) Jamboree (2) Jukebox Pick of the Week (2) Live and Let Die (1) Lollapalooza 2021 (1) Lollapalooza Chicago Grant Park (2) Mavis Staples (1) Moreland & Arbuckle (1) North Mississippi Allstars (1) Otis Taylor Band (1) Paul McCartney (1) Q101 (2) Rattle That Lock (2) Ravina (2) Ravinia (11) RiverEdge Park (2) Rodríguez (2) Rolling Stones (2) Royal Southern Brotherhood (1) Santana (2) Sharon Jones (1) Steely Dan (2) Sticky Fingers (1) Summerfest (1) Tedeschi Trucks Band (1) The Rockabye Gollie Angel Tour (2) Toto (2) Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue (1) United Center (2) Veruca Salt (2) Wheels of Soul Tour (1) Wings (1) Yes (2) ZZ Top (2)

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Stats

  • 179,767 Page Views
© 2023 In The Loop Magazine / All Rights Reserved.
  • Music News
  • Media
  • Festivals
  • Promotions
  • Venues
  • About
  • Gallery